Guitar Time!
by Unrealcomix
Summary: After finding a guitar in the woods, Finn decides to learn how to something other than fight. And who better to teach him than Ooo's resident music expert?
1. PrologueChapter 1

"Adventure Time,

Come one, grab your friends;

We'll go to very distant lands!

With Jake the Dog

And Finn the Human

The fun will never end

It's Adventure Time!"

bright yellow sun rose over the Land of Ooo as Jake the Dog and Finn the Human sprinted across the verdant hills, chasing a massive ogre with Raggedy Princess slung over its shoulder.

"Save me, Finn and Jake!" She cried, in every way the archetypical damsel in distress.

"Don't worry princess, we got you!" Finn shouted, taking a millisecond to ponder how much deeper his voice had gotten in the past few years before springing into action. He drew his sword from his pack and leapt on to the ogre's back; the creature roared and swatted at the wiry young man, only to have a sword thrust through its hand for the trouble. As it yowled, clutching its injured appendage, Jake shot forward and wrapped his stretchy magical body around its legs; it growled and tumbled to the ground while Finn swooped past and grabbed Raggedy Princess from it's clutches and landing neatly on his feet.

"Hey, be more careful from now on, eh, Princess?" Finn said, gently depositing her on the ground.

"Y-yes, well you know me, Finn; unlucky Raggedy!" She mumbled, blushing furiously. "Thank you!" ON that, she dashed off, leaving Finn slightly confused. He turned and began strolling in his own direction.

"Hey, Jake?" Finn spoke up after a subdued silence, kicking along the dirt path they had found themselves on.

"Yeah, bro?" Jake replied, sensing an important topic upcoming.

"Why are Princesses always so blush-y and stutter-y when they talk to me?" he asked, concern clear on his face. "Are they scared of me or something?"

"Nah, man, it's 'cuz they think you're _hot._" Jake chuckled, elbowing his bro and moving his eyebrows suggestively.

"Psh, nahh…" was Finn's flustered response as he lightly cuffed Jake away. He ran his fingers through his shaggy blond tresses and looked pensively into the trees. As he walked along, a glint among the branches caught his eye. Wordlessly, he swerved off the path into the thicket and with a familiarity born of long years of teamwork, Jake followed suit. After a few moments of traversing the tricky undergrowth, Finn found the object that had piqued his interest; A big, cream-colored acoustic guitar. Finn picked it up and tentatively plucked a few strings; they rang forth in a mellow tone. A small smile began to play across Finn's lips as he continued to pluck, the open strings vibrating in the morning light. The smile soon broke into a big, honest grin that lit up the little patch of trees.

I know _just _who can help me play this."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Marceliiiiine!" The aforementioned Vampire Queen raised her head groggily from her pillow. Who dared raise the great Marceline, Bass Master, Empress of Darkness, Great and Powerful Lady of Sexy Malevolence? A knock shook her from her ruminations as the voice rang out again.

"Maaarceliiiine!" Oh. It was Finn. She let out a throaty chuckle as she floated from bed and began to dress. Of _course _it was Finn. The little squirt was the only one who ever showed up unannounced; everyone else was too scared to. But not Finn. Marceline paused a moment to think about the kid. It was odd she still called him squirt when, physically, he was older than her. At six feet tall, the boy she had met all those years ago had become a man. And _what _a man… Marceline shook her head, banishing such thoughts from her mind; Finn didn't like her that way, so why should she? She softly hovered towards the door after checking the mall mirror to make sure that yes, thank you, she _did _look fabulous today. Composing herself before the door, she pulled it open abruptly, and in her best fake-mad voice, shouted,

"What the lump are you dweebs doing? You woke me up!" As per usual, Finn was completely nonplussed. He grinned, hiding something behind his back.

"Hey, Marcie, I found this in a forest by Raggedy Princess's shack. Do you think you can help me learn how to use it?" He pulled the object from behind his back. Her eyes widened as she tried to comprehend what he was holding out to her.

"Oh my glob, a guitar! I haven't seen one of these since before the War!" She took it from his hand, inspecting the golden "_Taylor_" inscribed on the headstock. She fingered the frets, and sighed in aural pleasure as a beautiful G chord resonated through the air. Strumming in a quick pattern, she started to sing,

"wasting time…

All along you were

just wasting mine…

Ignoring all the signs

That point their way

out of our time…"

Finn grinned as he listened to beautiful voice of the raven haired girl.

"That's great, who is it?"

"No one important, just some band from a long time ago." She smiled softly. "I lost my CD's when the War went down, so now all I have of them are some chord sheets and memories." Her smile adopted a tinge of melancholy. Then she brightened. "So what did you need again?" Finn seemed to come out of a trance, shaking his head and smiling.

"Oh yeah, so, me and Jake found this and I was wondering if you could teach me how to play." Marceline was taken aback.

"Yeah, sure, I guess I could teach you." Her expression smoothly shifted from shock to excitement. "It'll be great to have someone to play with again!" She beckoned him inside. "Do you want your first lesson now?" Finn smiled brightly as he stepped inside. He turned to Jake, "Hey, do you want to come chill with us while I learn?" Jake shook his head.

"Nah, man, I gotta see Lady Rainicorn. She'll have picked the kids up from P.B.'s by now. I'll see you at home tonight."

"Aiight. Tell Heeryong and Jamie that Uncle Finn said hey."

"Will do, brother!" A quick fist pump later and Jake was on his way. Finn turned and carried his new guitar into Marceline's room. She grabbed a stool from her closet and set it up for him.

"Alright, so you know nothing about guitars, do you?"

"Well, I've watched you, but… not really, no." He looked slightly downcast. Marceline smiled reassuringly.

"That's fine." She said, patting his knee. She grabbed her axe bass and started pointing out different components of the instrument.

"Here's a crash course in the parts. Here's the headstock, and these are the tuning keys. The keys keep the strings in tune. Speaking of, these here are the strings…"

A couple hours of foundation training later, Finn was ready to start. He put his hands where Marceline had shown him for a G chord, inhaled, and strummed-a discordant jangle was his reward. Slightly miffed, he continued plucking at the strings, failing to generate more than an unpleasant jangled sound.

"Marciiiiie, I can't _do _it!" He whined dejectedly, hanging his head and pouting. Marceline smiled.

"You're not pressing down on the frets enough." She said, floating over to him and putting her arms around him to help. Finn blushed as he felt her pressed against his back. She softly smiled before continuing, "You've got to press down all the way on the strings, or they won't vibrate right." She put her fingers over his, depressing them completely. She moved his other hand across the strings and played the chord. She looked up him and smiled. "Get it?" He nodded. She grinned, kissed his cheek, and floated back to her bass as he flushed crimson and tried to concentrate on his guitar. She did that to him a lot. He figured it was a power thing; she was a radical dame who liked to play games, and seeing how red she could make him was one of them. He dismissed it and kept practicing.

It didn't take long for Finn's fingers to start hurting. At that point he kept pausing to blow on them so much that Marceline called time for a break. They went off to her living room for a snack; Finn lounged on the couch while Marceline grabbed some sodas from the kitchen fridge.

"Hey, catch." She said, tossing a plaid can to Finn. He caught it with ease and studied the label.

"Radi-cola?" He said, perplexed. "Where'd you get this stuff? I've never seen it before."

"Oh, I bought it off a raccoon at a party a loooong time ago." She waved her hand. "But that's not important. So tell me, why'd you want to learn guitar?" Her eyes were bright and attentive. Finn shifted a little.

"Well, I mean, I always see you playing bass, and Jake has his viola, and even P.B. can use Beemo to make music. I was just kinda tired of just beat boxing, you know?"She nodded, understanding completely.

"You wanted your own voice." "Yeah…" He absently sipped his drink and looked down at his sore fingers. "But I never thought playing guitar would hurt!" Marceline giggled.

"You just have to practice more," she said, "soon enough you'll start building up calluses like mine." She touched her hands to his, and Finn marveled at the complexity of feeling that her hands conveyed; strength and tenderness, rough and gentle, a juxtaposition that suited perfectly the girl whose eyes he was now staring into deeply. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, their faces moved towards each other, the scarlet orbs of her eyes seeming to swell until they dominated the whole of his vision. His pulse quickened; a bead of sweat formed on his brow. Then, as their faces moved ever so slowly towards each other, deliberately, sweetly- Finn's phone rang.

"Adventure Time! C'mon grab your friends! We'll go to ve-"was all the phone blared out before Finn frantically grabbed it to answer.

"Nice ringtone." said Marceline amusedly, a playful if disappointed look on her face.

"Yeah, well, heh, you know…" Finn chuckled weakly before turning to the phone. "What do you need, Jake?" He nearly hissed, inwardly seething at the interruption.

"Hey, bro, I need you to watch the kids tonight. Something came up and Bob needs my help in the Crystal Dimension. You know, business stuff. Can you help me out?" Finn sighed.

"Yeah, I'll be there in a bit." He turned to Marceline with a rueful look. "Jake needs me to babysit the kids. Is it okay if we cut the lesson short?" Marceline's expression softened.

"Yeah, it's cool." She said, sweetly. "Just practice what I showed you and come back in a couple days so I can gauge your progress. Mkay?" Finn smiled.

"'Kay." He picked up his guitar and started making for the door.

"Wait!" came Marceline's voice. He turned, perplexed. She flew up to her room and came back with a big guitar case. "This'll keep your guitar safer than just carrying it around all exposed-like." She proffered it to him, and he took it happily. He snapped it open after a moment of examination and nestled his guitar into the plush interior. He inspected the leather exterior and all the stickers atop it.

"Simple Plan? Rancid? Fall Out Boy? What're those?"

"Echoes from a forgotten time, Finn." She said with a tinge of nostalgia, "Just echoes." She patted her knees and stood, or rather, shifted from a sitting position to a more upright one in midair. "Now, you got some unholy abominations to watch over." She paused. "Come to think of it, I have no idea what you'd call the tykes. Rainipups? Puppicorns?" She shook her head. "Anyways, scoot." Finn grinned and headed back for the door. With his hand on the doorknob, he paused.

"Hey, Marcie?" He said in a strange, strangled voice. Her head shot up.

"Yes, Finn?" For a moment, he seemed about to say something important, but the appeared to think better of it and simply stated,

"Thanks for teaching me guitar."

"Oh… Yeah, no problem." She said, bemused. Finn nodded and walked out the door. Halfway out of the cave, he stopped and looked back. For a moment, he fancied she would be thinking of him the same as he was thinking of her. But then the moment passed, and he dismissed the thought as frivolous; she was a super tough, beautiful vampire queen. She had no feelings for him. He had imagined the moment earlier. He turned back and kept walking.

Inside the house Marceline floated beside the window. For a moment, she fancied Finn turned back to look at her. Then, just as soon as it had happened, he kept walking. She must have imagined it. Finn was probably too stuck in seeing her as a friend to think of her as anything else. Still, that moment in the living room… it seemed like he'd been about to kiss her. She decided she'd do a couple tests to see if he could really feel anything for her. She turned back and sat idly strumming her bass. A smile formed on her face as she considered finishing that almost kiss.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: **So that was a much better response than I expected for my first foray! Neverthrive and Rubysword both read and reviewed, and they were the ones who first inspired me to start writing. So here's the new chapter. If you couldn't tell, this story has a main story arc but I've realized taht there's a lot going on in Finn's life beyond the whole FinnxMarcie schtick. So yeah, this and parts of the next chapter are going to involve the rest of Finn's life. Hope you like, please review!

Finn sat on the couch, idly strumming his guitar as he watched the two rainicorn-dog hybrids play together on the floor. Finn wasn't sure what the species was called, so personally, he just called them kids. It seemed to work. He had tired them out with tag and hide-and-seek, and now the twins laid on the floor playing various games on BMO. He smiled at the two of them on the rug. He sat the guitar aside and sat down beside them.

"How you guys doing?" He asked patting Jamie on he head and ruffling his technicolor fur.

"Good, Uncle Finn." the pup smiled. He took after his father most, even down to inheriting his magical powers, though Jamie lacked his Jake's finesse. "Heeryeong is hungry, though." His little stomach rumbled and he scrunched up his face. "I might be too." He confessed. Finn laughed and swept them up into his arms.

Alright then, let's chow down!" He crowed, tumbling into the kitchen. The kids whooped with joy as he performed complex acrobatics with them in his arms until he landed in a heap at the kitchen table. He set the kids down and clapped his hands.

"Okay, what do you guys want to eat?"

"Everything burrito!" They chorused. Finn chuckled slightly, remembering the first time Jake made n everything burrito.

"Sorry guys, that's your dad's dish, not mine. How about pizza?"

"Yay!" The kids cried, their enthusiasm wholly undampened. Finn smiled in relief; pizza was one of the few things he knew how to cook, and the only thing he had left in the house. He grabbed a frozen pie from the icebox and stuck it in the macrowave. The pizza was fully cooked in seconds, the smell of pepperoni, cheese, and fresh-baked dough permeating the air with it's salivatory aroma. A few swift slices of the cutter later and the kids were chewing away. Finn sat between them and munched absently as he considered his niece and nephew. It staggered him how seemingly simultaneously the children embodied their parents and at the same time were emphatically their own persons. Jamie had his father's nose and the husky baritone long associated with dogs, but had his mother's coloration and long body. Heeryeong was budding an iconic Rainicorn horn and had her mother's lilting voice, but was the same shape as her father and retained Jake's yellowish hide. Admittedly, the family photos were a little strange, but undeniably the household was a happy one. Finn grinned, scratching the ruff of fur on fur on Heeryeong's head. He hoped he might have such a legacy someday. Then, as soon as the thought crossed his mind, an image of Marceline leapt unbidden into his mind. The connection perplexed him; yet, at the same time, it was strangely alluring. After a few moments of happy fantasizing about having a happy family of his own someday, Finn decided to file the thought into his subconscious before he got all soul search-y and _weeeeiird. _Looking back to the kids, he noticed their food was finished and they were yawning sleepily at their empty plates. He glanced at the clock and noticed it was an hour past their bedtime. Yipe, no wonder they were so tired. He gathered them into his arms, carried them into the bedroom, and deposited them into the ancient chest of drawers that Jake had used as a bed for so many years. Just as he started tucking them in, Jamie turned to him and implored, blinking owlishly,

"Can we have a lullaby, Uncle Finn?" Finn smiled.

"Of course." He whispered softly, reaching into his ever-present pack and withdrawing his adoptive mother's music box. The Dog family didn't have much, and the music box was all that his mother had left him after the sickness took her. Slowly turning the cranks, Finn began to sing as melodic chiming filled the air,"

"Don't be weepy, sleepy puppies

Put your booties on your footies

In the morning you'll get goodies

Puppy hats and puppy hoodies

No stripes or polka dots

Feather light and feather soft

Maybe pink or baby blue

All the drawstrings you can chew…"

The lullaby was a guaranteed knockout, and the pups were fast asleep by the second or third line. After he finished, he had tears of nostalgia in his eyes from memories of when he and Jake had been like this, and of longing to see his late mother again. Wiping his eyes and scoffing at himself for being so weak he straightened and went back downstairs to maybe play some videogames when his guitar seemed to flash in the lagging light. Feeling compelled, he sat on the couch and began to strum gently, while unbeknownst to him BMO began to silently watch and record. In the feeling of the moment, and gripped by muse, he began singing softly,

"Mom…can you hear me…?

Way up there, past time and space?

And Mom…did you know I miss you…

More, and more… each passing day?

I wish I could tell you things

Like about the girl I like, or

Make you laugh with funny things I say

And Mom you know I miss you

So very bad since when you went away…"

As the last chord hung heavy in the still air, Finn became aware of silent tears pouring in tacit rivulets down his cheeks. Setting his guitar aside, he buried his face in his hands and began to cry softly, more than he had let himself cry in all the years since his mother's death, more than he had let himself when faced with all the horrors he had ultimately triumphed over throughout his short life in Ooo. In the dark of night, with moonlight filtered through the windows, sleeping rain pups in the room above and a guitar by his side, Finn the Human, greatest hero of Ooo, last member of a dying race, who always thought of others well before he thought of himself, finally broke down. He wept, and as he wept he slowly felt all the heartache and pain he had long kept locked inside drain from his soul like water bailed from a boat, leaving it much lighter than it had been in quite a while. As he sniffle and wiped his eyes, he noticed BMO watching from the corner. As the little computer tried to fell, Finn called,

"Wait." BMO froze, and hesitantly made her way over to Finn. Finn placed his hands on the sides of BMO's blocky body. "I haven't been paying you much attention lately, have I?" BMO nodded.

"By my records, it has been two months, three weeks, and five days since you last had a conversation with me that didn't involve videogames…"she said in her tinny voice, her sadness evident. Finn's heart broke a little before he pulled her in for a quick hug.

"I'm sorry, BMO. I promise I'll try harder to make you feel more welcome. You've been with me forever and you deserve that." BMO smiled, and together the two talked until the wee hours of morn, when Finn finally fell asleep with a faint smile on his face.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: So here's the new chapter. These things are getting longer and longer, it seems. Thanks to all you lovely folks who have read and reviewed so far, and I hope you all continue to do so in the future. I hope my writing stays up to snuff. Hooray for writing by the seat of your pants! ^_^ **

**Chapter 4**

The next morning, Finn was awakened by Jake knocking on the front door. He felt the dog in quietly, putting his fingers to his lips.

"The kids are still sleeping." He murmured. Jake smiled and nodded. Putting a comically large finger to his lips and tip-toeing exaggeratively upstairs. When he got there, he formed is hand into a trumpet and began pretending to play revele. The kids' eyes flew open and they pounced from their beds onto their father.

"Daddy!" They cried, hugging him tightly. Jake let loose a great basso chuckle.

"Man, you guys missed me! I was only gone for a day!" The children giggled as he formed seats for them on his shoulders and took them downstairs.

"Were you guys good for Uncle Finn?" The twin tykes exuberantly voiced their affirmatives. Finn spoke up from the doorway.

"They were great, as usual." Jake laughed and turned to the kitchen.

"Hey bro, guess what?"

"What?"

"As thanks for watching my pups, I'mma make you breakfast, just like old times!" Jake practically flew into the kitchen and stopped as soon as he looked at the icebox, fridge, and pantry to find them all empty save for a few frozen pizzas.

"Finn!" Jake shouted sternly. "Don't you have any food?" Finn cringed a little and started up,

"I usually eat out, and I don't really need to keep much here…" Jake shook his head as Finn trailed off.

"That's bullarkey! I shoulda known you wouldn't keep the pantry stocked!" He nodded his head definitively. "That's it, we're going grocery shopping." Finn groaned.

"C'mon, man! Can't we just…not?" Jake shook his head again.

"No, I'm gonna teach you to get more variety in your diet. Life skillz!" Jake flailed his arms at that last part. Finn sighed and resigned himself to boredom. Suddenly, and idea sparked in his mind.

"Hey, can I invite Marceline?" Jake was surprised, but acquiesced. Finn grinned and pulled out his phone, dialing the Vampire Queen's number. After a few rings, she picked up.

"Hello?" "Hey Marcie, Jake's gonna take me shopping or life skills or some crunk. Wanna come with so it won't be lame?" A pregnant pause followed, and Finn was nervous that she would decline, when she finally said,

"Sure, I'll be over in a bit." Finn grinned.

"Great! I'll see you soon." She hung up and Finn quickly got ready.

On the other side of the phone line, Marceline stared at her cell in faint disbelief. Did that little punk just ask her out? It was veiled, but… She snorted. He was probably too clueless to think of such a thing. Still, the opportunity was too good to pass up. Biting her lip slightly and smiling slyly, she floated over to her closet and began picking out an outfit. Her smile grew as her ensemble came together. Wait till that snot got a load of her!

Finn was practicing guitar outside when she arrived, completely oblivious to the world. After listening awhile, she decided to make her presence known.

"Ahem." She said quietly; his ears pricked up and he looked up at her.

"Hey, Marci-WHOA." His eyes grew huge as they took in her appearance. Outwardly she kept her face amused, but on the inside she was cheering that after these years she could still evoke such a reaction from him. Vainly struggling to appear nonchalant, Finn looked her up and down, from the black denim short shorts and bat-patterned fishnets that displayed her long, lithe legs, to the tight red v-neck with the plunging neckline that accentuated her more womanly curves. He gulped noticeably.

"Well, you look, um, nice." He stammered lamely. She looked down at herself, successfully hiding the way her heart(or what went for it) fluttered at his words.

"What, this? Psh, I just threw it on." That was a lie. "I didn't even think about it." That was a _bigger_ lie. "So anyways, what're we doing?" Finn blinked slowly, as if coming up from hypnosis, and came aware.

"Oh, yeah, so Jake yelled at me for not taking care of myself, so he's taking me to the store to teach me or something." He chuckled ruefully and put his guitar back in its case. He straightened. "We were just waiting for you, actually. Jake, she's here!" he called into the house. Jake launched himself into the air from the inside, two kids in tow.

"Let's go!" He cried, before stopping a moment in puzzlement at Marceline's outfit before continuing, "Hey, we gotta stop by the Candy Kingdom and drop the kids off with Bubblegum." The other two nodded, and together the motley crew struck off down the path.

A small time later, the kids had been deposited with Princess Bubblegum and Prince Gumball(A story for another time) and now Jake, Marceline, and Finn were walking to the store, chatting amicably. Soon enough the large building came into view over the crest of the hill and they looked down upon it. There hung a large red banner proclaiming "Choose Goose Neighbourhood Grocery." The sign gave Marceline pause.

"Uh, I know I don't pay attention to the rest of Ooo much, but I thought Choose Goose was a crazy wacko in a shack by the river? How does he have a supermarket?"

"Good investment choices." Was Jake's reply.

"Oh." Said Marceline.

And that was that.

Soon, the group was at the door, and a grand display stretched out before them. From weapons and armour to food and drink to soaps and hardware, the store had everything, even-

"CD's!" Marceline squeed and flew over to a rack of shiny plastic cases.

"Life with no music is such a bore,

So I found some CD's to restore!"

Quipped Choose Goose, appearing seemingly out of thin air. Finn grabbed the rubber limbed waterfowl into a big hug.

"Choose Goose! How ya doing, ya big galoot?" Choose Goose chuckled maniacally, dancing out of Finn's grip with no apparent difficulty or concern for the laws of physics or reality.

"I've been quite happy, yes it's true,

But enough of me, how have been you?"

Finn grinned. Choose Goose was always exciting to visit.

"I've been good, Choose Good. Things have been good." Choose Goose flashed forward, eyeing Finn critically with his great googly eyes.

"I see you've let go of your fears.

Beyond that, you are out of tears?"

Finn was taken aback, shocked by Choose Goose's insight. He stammered,

"Uh, yeah, I am. How'd you know?" He asked, looking closely at the same thing. Choose Goose grinned and shook his head.

"The answer you don't need to know,

And on that note, I gotta go!"

Choose Goose ducked behind a counter and was gone. Left on the counter was a gift card and a slip of paper that read,

"Finn and Jake and Marceline,

Human, dog, and Vampire Queen,

I see you want to shop this store

This card will buy a little more!"

Finn picked up the card and looked at the amount readout. There was no number, only a large infinity symbol.

"Jake," Finn said slowly, "Does this mean what I think it does?" Jake grinned.

"I think so, bro, I think so."

"The most important thing about groceries," said Jake, "is to realize that you're usually only buying enough food for maybe a month at most. When you buy perishable foods, only buy what you can eat before it goes bad. Non-perishables, you can buy as much as you want, but they might get stale." Jake pulled a notepad from a pouch and scribbled down a quick grocery list as Finn strived to absorb all this knowledge. "Take this and go find as much of it as you can. I gotta talk to Marceline about something." Finn took the list, a bit confused, and walked off down the aisle. Marceline turned to Jake, trying to mask her dread and only partially succeeding.

"So, uh, what do you need, Jake?" Marceline was shocked to see how hard she had to work not to be cowed by the short dog's stony glare.

"Marceline," He said, casual and deadly serious at the same time. "What's going on with you and Finn?"

"Going on?" She spluttered, faking a laugh. "Psh, there's nothing… going… on…" Her act fell apart under his powerful gaze and she trailed off.

"Marceline, I'm a dad. I can tell when someone's hiding something. Spill, girl." He dropped into his "Deep Chocolate" voice at that last, which reassured her somewhat that this was still the Jake she knew. She sighed.

"Alright, I'll tell you… I think I might be falling for Finn. And I think he likes me." Jake nodded, and motioned to her outfit.

"Is that the reason for that getup?" Marceline winced.

"Yeah… 'cause I'm still not sure how he feels about me, 'cause he almost kissed me, but then you called and he didn't, and he keeps on getting chances andnottakingthemandI'msoconfused." The words seemed to fall from her mouth like rain as she blushed, flustered. Jake looked hard at her for a moment longer, then let out an accidental snicker,

"Is this funny to you?" Marceline nearly shouted. At that, Jake lost it and collapsed into hysterical laughter. Marceline felt her face grow hot and hissed,

"What in Glob's name are you laughing about?" Jakes laughter slowly subsided and he picked himself up, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.

"All this angsting, it's hilarious! The whole, "does he, doesn't he" thing! You're what, a thousand? And you're acting like a schoolgirl!" Marceline was dumbfounded. She gaped, speechless, as Jake continued, "Marcie, Finn obviously likes you. The kid's transparent. If you really like him, make a move. But," and at this Jake's face grew stern again, "If you hurt my bro, I will mess you up. Got it?" Marceline nodded. Jake smiled. "Good. Now let's go find him." The two began searching throughout the massive store. Suddenly they rounded a corner and found Finn dragging along a shopping cart filled to the brim with all manner of miscellaneous items.

"Finn, what is all this?" Jake asked, exasperated. Finn looked sheepish.

"I… kinda went crazy with the shopping." Jake just stood there, shaking his head and chuckling.

"Alright, well, next time, we're gonna have to work on moderation. Let's get this rung up."

Soon enough the group had taken the groceries up to the treehouse and fully stocked Finn's pantry (a sight not seen in the house since Jake had moved out) and now, with the addition of Beemo, the group sat in friendly conversation in the living room.

"Oh, shoot, I gotta get home." Jake said, looking at his watch and standing. Finn got up to see him out.

"Alright, we still got that barbecue this weekend?"

"You know it, brudda. I'll see you there." With that, Jake padded off into the twilight. Turning back, Finn found Marceline staring with rapt attention at Beemo's screen. Finn was initially puzzled until he heard the strains of his improvised songs from the night previous. His heart fell and he felt a cold pit in his stomach as he closed his eyes and waited for the song to end and the ridicule to begin. He heard the song shut off and opened one eye. Marceline was staring at him with a strange expression.

"Yeah, heh, pretty lame, huh?" Finn said, rubbing his arm and affecting a chuckle.

"Finn." He looked up and suddenly she was kissing him, kissing him hard, filling him with sensations he had never experienced before, a feeling of bliss unmatched by any thing he had ever known. Unfortunately, the sensory overload proved a bit much, as as soon as she broke contact he fainted in her arms, a huge grin in his face.


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Not sure about the quality on this one, but I finished it. This one's a bit more mature, methinks, so I'll bump it up a rating letter, mayhaps. Also, for those curious, Prince Gumball IS in Ooo, and how that happened will be the subject of another story. Thanks for reading, and please continue.**

**Chapter 5**

"…Finn! Finn!" Finn groaned and cracked an eye groggily. His eyes positively flew open, however, when he noticed what was on him.

"H-hey, M-m-Marceline…" he stuttered to the girl who was currently straddling him, face inches from his.

"Hey, Finn." Marceline replied with baited breath, anxious to see how Finn would react to her little sneak attack. He was silent for a long time, thinking.

"You kissed me, didn't you, Marcie?"

"Yes, Finn."

"And I don't think that was just another game just to make me blush?"

"No, Finn."

"So you _like _me, don't you?"

"…yes, Finn." He smiled.

"Good." in a flash, almost too fast for Marceline to see, Finn had her off of him and pinned to the floor of the treehouse. Marceline feigned a struggle before giving in, staring up at his burning blue eyes as they bored into hers. "Do you know how crazy you were driving me today, in that?" His eyes flicked down her form for a moment, lingering a bit at points. Marceline grinned up at him impishly, enjoying this turn of events immensely.

"Why, whatever do you mean, Finn?" she asked innocently, channeling her inner southern belle. Finn growled,

"You know what I mean." this new roughness to his voice sent shivers down her spine. She decided she like Dominant Finn.

"What are you gonna do about it?" She asked, leading him a bit. Finn smirked as an idea sparked in his mind: payback for all the years of teasing. Starting at her left wrist, he began planting soft kisses up and down her arm, across her collarbone, up and down her other arm and back. Then he went from her collarbone up her throat, adding a bit of light biting here and there, eliciting a gasp every so often amongst the sighs. Then, he kissed both of her cheeks, her forehead, her nose, her jawline. When he finally seemed ready to kiss her lips, he stopped with them still an inch apart. He stayed there, waiting, drawing out the seconds, as she began to struggle against him, mewling softly. He moved him lips back every time she attempted to join her mouth to his, waiting until she could hardly stand it. She writhed in his grip, and he decided she'd suffered enough and let go. As soon as she was free she reversed his pin and punced, kissing him with even more fervor than previously. This time, however, he wasn't caught off guard. He clutched her to him and bunched his fingers in her hair, their two bodies melting into one, kissing her back with strength equal to hers.

This time, his phone didn't ring.

Marceline's first notion that it was morning was the slight rays of yellow sunlight filtering in through the windows, giving her skin slight sizzle. She groaned and pulled the covers over her head.

"Finn."

"Mmph?" came the grunted reply from next to her.

"Finn, cover the window."

"Mmpphhh… sleepy…"

"Finn, cover the window!" She said grumpily, booting the wiry young man from the bed. He stood, rubbing his sore rear end.

"Fine, fine… raggum fraggum,…" he grumbled, grabbing a large blanket from the floor and loped it over the curtain hooks, plunging the world into semi-darkness. "There, happy?" He said, feigning irritation.

"You have _no_ idea," she replied, stretching like a jungle cat and slinking out of bed.

"You hungry? I've actually got food, now." Finn asked as his stomach grumbled. Marceline noticed that she, too, was famished.

"Ravenous." she said, pecking his cheek before floating downstairs to the kitchen. Finn pulled the book Jake had gotten him the day before, "_100 Dishes for the Newly Independent,_" and scrambled some eggs while pouring Marceline a glass of tomato juice. Together, thy ate in companionable silence, just enjoying each other's presence, until a knock on the door broke them from their musing.

"I'll get it." Finn got up and opened the door, revealing their morning visitor to be none other than Jake the Dog.

"Hey, bro, you ready for another day filled with ADVENTURE?" He cried, waving his arms about like noodles.

"Yeah man, for sure. C'mon in." Jake followed Finn inside, chattering away about their plans for the day, only to stop dead at the sight of Marceline sitting at the kitchen table, sipping from her mug. Jake was puzzled for a moment, then his eyes went huge when he noticed she was wearing basically the same outfit she had on the day before, minus a few articles of clothing ad wrapped in a bed sheet. He looked over at Finn, noticing for thee first time the faint smears of lipstick on the shirtless boy's neck and face, before turning back to Marceline.

"Sup?" she said simply. Jake chuckled weakly before scooping her up and whirling into another room, leaving behind a _very _confused Finn.

"Jake, what the hey-hey?" Marceline asked angrily.

"What is going on?" Jake rode over her question completely. "What happened after I left last night?" Marceline was bemused.

"I followed your advice and made a move. And good LORD, was it worth it. Do you have any idea how well that boy can kiss?" Jake looked uncomfortable.

"Uh, _no, _and I don't _want _an idea. But did you guys…" He waved his hands about in several gestures, "you know?" Marceline was confused,

"Did we what?" Her eyes grew wide as comprehension dawned on her. "oh. OH! Oh, no. No. No." She shook her head firmly. "No, we did not do… that." She looked a bit hurt. "What kind of girl do you think I am?" Jake eyed her.

"Sometimes, Marceline, I have no idea." The hurt was now painfully evident. "Look, Marcie, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that, I'm just a little weirded out…" she just nodding, fighting tears, and ran out of the room, grabbing her clothes. As she passed Finn, he said,

"Hey Marcie, where are you going?" She smiled through the tears and kissed him softly on the lips. He looked concerned. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I've just got some stuff to do. I'll see you soon, kay?" He nodded, slightly dazed, as she opened her umbrella and left. Confused, he turned to Jake.

"What was THAT all about?"

"So, uh, you and Marcie, huh?" Jake spoke up cautiously as the ambled along the path.

"I guess so." Finn smiled happily. "It surprised me too."

"Well, how'd it happen?" Finn rubbed his chin thoughtfully, feeling his sparse stubble.

"I dunno. It just kinda…did." He shrugged. "I'm happy it did, though." Jake nodded, guilty about his earlier words to her. "Anyways, what are we gonna do today?" Jake consulted his day planner.

"Oh! First, we've got a meeting with King Simon and Doctor Princess about the barbeque party. Ready to go to the Ice Kingdom?"

"Aw, YEAH!" Finn crowed, leaping onto Jake's back as the dog grew to a much larger size and galloped off. Soon enough the King's Ice Palace came into view and the duo of adventurers were ushered in by Simon's royal guard. They entered the meeting hall, where Simon and Doctor Princess were lounging and sitting primly on the royal couch, respectfully. Upon seeing Finn and Jake, Simon bounded up to them and drew them into a big bear hug.

"Finn! Jake! How have you guys been?" Finn struggled to draw breath; the wiry Russian was deceptively strong.

"We've been good, Simon. How about you?" Finn gasped out. The former Ice King released them, grinning from ear to ear.

"Fantastic, boys. I'm free, finally free! I just can't get enough, and I can't thank you enough for forgiving my transgressions as the Ice King." Finn blushed, embarrassed by the gratitude; he was a humble hero, and not comfortable with too much praise. Simon recognized his embarrassment and sobered somewhat, though still just as effervescent.

"So what did you guys need?" Jake pulled out his notepad and peered at the words scrawled upon't.

"Alright, well first off, we're here to invite you to Princess Bubblegum's Baby Shower Barbeque Jamboree. Would you like to come?" Simon grinned even wider, if possible, and scratched his short-cropped beard.

"I'd love to. But let's check with the missus; what do you think, hon?" he called back to Doctor Princess.

"Sounds great, dear." she deadpanned. Simon turned back and chuckled.

"So that's a yes. What else do you need?" Jake peered back at his list.

"Okay, so the barbeque is also a potluck, so we were wondering if you could contribute some ice sculptures and frozen treats. Thoughts?" Simon grinned, concentrated, and pulled into existence a fist sized sphere of ice, filled with twists and whorls. He looked up, eyes twinkling.

"I think I can do that."

**AN: So yeah, Simon's back! That will also be a story I'm writing. Also, sorry for the bit more sexual scene at the beginning :x**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Yo peeps! What up? Sorry for taking so long to update! I have no excuse. But here it is, a BIG new chapter! Hope you like it!**

**Chapter 6**

Finn and Jake shot the breeze with Simon for awhile longer, then went off on their way.

"So what's next, my man?" Finn asked, bouncing on the balls of his feet. Jake scrutinized his list again.

"We've got a few invitations left to deliver; Susan, Billy, not to mention Lady's parents." Finn's brow furrowed.

"Wait, why didn't you invite them when you were helping Bob the other day?" Jake paused.

"I have no idea." He said.

"Fair enough." And so on they walked.

The pair walked along until a clearing with a certain sewer hatch came into view. Finn and Jake twisted the handle and clambered down into the brightly lit sewer. Here and there, various Hyoomans danced and drummed on old car hoods, with bonfires and fluorescent lights interspersed throughout, giving the sewer a surreal light. Finn scanned the scene before spotting the big blonde woman he was looking for.

"Susan!" He called, causing her to look up and bound towards them, hugging them tightly.

"Finn! Jake! How are you?" Her speech impediment was nearly gone these days, thanks to speech therapy with Princess Bubblegum. Finned hugged her back, lifting her from the ground. Susan laughed and said,

"You've gotten strong, Finn!" she giggled and flexed after he put her down. "Still not as strong as Susan, though!" Finn laughed.

"How are you doing, Susan?" Susan smiled.

"Susan is good. Hyoomans are happy being vege… vege… vegematarians." she stumbled over the last word, but smiled when she finished. "What you need, Finn?" Finn pulled a slip of paper from his pack and handed it to her.

"Susan Strong, leader of the Hyoomans, Princess Bubblegum would like to invite you to her baby shower barbecue jamboree! What do you say?" Susan thought for a moment, face contemplative.

"Mkay." She said after some time. A thought dawned on her. "Hey! Can you help with something?" Finn looked at Jake, who shrugged, then nodded. He turned to Susan.

"Sure, what do you need?" Susan gestured to her people.

"Hyoomans getting better, but Susan cannae help alo'. Need teachers. Need supplies. Books n' stuff. Can you find someone to help Hyoomans talk and write?" Finn thought it over.

"Yeah, we can probably do that. Right, Jake?" He asked his dog.

"Sure thing, brother." Finn nodded.

"Aiight, Susan, we'll totes find you some teachers. Is that all you need?" Susan smiled and nodded. "Aiight, cool." Finn high-fived her, she kissed him on the head, and he went for the door. "Oh," he said as an afterthought. "The barbecue's a potluck, so bring some sort of food, alright?" Susan smiled and nodded as Finn and Jake climbed up to the hatch and left.

The duo were on their way to Billy's when something caught Finn's eye.

"Hey, Jake, look at that."

"What is it?" The pair approached the "it" in question. It was a grey shack with a red door, he gleaming window on which had grabbed Finn's attention.

"What do you think's inside?" asked Jake, eyes huge.

"I dunno, man, but we're checking it out." Jake nodded, and Finn opened the door, breaking through with his shoulder when the knob stuck. Inside, they found two connected rooms. The first room was cluttered; he second was obscured behind a large door. On one wall(the wall with the inner door) was a large glass window, beneath which was a large table covered in buttons, sliders, and knobs. Another wall had a writing desk covered in notebooks and loose papers. The third and final wall had racks of CD's in two large rows, labeled BLANK and FILLED, along with a CD player and a sound system. The most striking, eyecatching aspect of the room, however, was definitely the corpse. Sitting in a chair at the soundboard, the skeleton wore jeans and a torn t-shirt. It was mostly decomposed, the only defining feature being the dark brown hair that inexplicably tumbled down onto its shoulders. Clutched in its desiccated hands was a CD case with PLAY ME emblazoned across it. Finn worked the case from the skeleton's grasp and inserted the CD into the disc tray. The sound of labored breathing poured from the speakers.

"Hrghh… hello. My name is John Marx, and the bombs have just begun to fall. If you're listening to this, then you've survived the apocalypse. Good for you!" the voice laughed harshly, degenerating into hacking coughs. The voice stopped, then resumed. "Alright, anyways, to business. People saw the end coming, and most did nothing. Some, however, made preparations for the future of humanity. Hideouts like these have been secreted away around California. This, entrusted to me, was created for the purpose of ensuring the survival of music after the end. The filled CD's are filled with my combined knowledge of music; theory, technique, and culture. The blank ones are for you. Fill them with beauty. It's your turn. My name is John Marx, and if you're hearing this, you're part of the resistance. Hehehe…" the voice coughed again, and the track went silent. Finn and Jake stood together in the dimly lit studio, taciturn. Finn screwed up his determination and wiped the dust from the window in the middle of the wall. His eyes widened at what he saw.

"Jake," the dog's ears perked up. "You're going to have to deliver those invitations without me." Jake looked concerned.

"What will you be doing?" he asked. Finn turned to him and grinned wolfishly.

"Learning."

Marceline the Vampire Queen was flipping the flop out. Inwardly, of course. Outwardly she had her poker face up. She was sitting in Princess Bubblegum's tearoom, lounging on a lumpy pink sofa while Prince Gumball put a kettle on while Bonnibel put her feet up on a table, once hand caressing her burgeoning baby bump.

"Now," she said, shooing away he fussy husband, "What is it that is so important that my aloof best bud has deigned to visit poor, boring Bonnie?" she said, a little smirk twitching about her mouth. Marceline took a deep breath, and, eyes scrunched up, said,

"I had sloppy hot makeouts with Finn." Gumball, who had been daintily sipping at his tea, spurted it out in a most undignified manner, as Bonnibel let out a flat "what." Quickly composing herself, she smiled sweetly to Gumball and said, "Bartleby, dear, could you let us be alone for a bit? Marceline and I need to have some… girl talk." Bartleby wiped his mouth and nodded, trying to maintain some dignity and walking out. Bonnie kept smiling as he left, and as soon as the door closed she turned dead serious and locked onto Marceline.

"Alright, chickie, dish. What happened?" Marceline took another breath before launching into her tale.

"Okay, so I was at Finn's house after we went shopping and I think it was a date? I'm still fuzzy on that. Anyways, Finn was talking to Jake when Beemo walks up and tells me he's got something I need to see." She downed her tea, ignoring the blandness of the brown liquid, needing only to lubricate a throat that had quickly gotten inexplicably dry. "Then, before I could say anything, he up and throws up this video of Finn singing. Did you know I taught him to play guitar?" Bubblegum shook her head. "Well I did, and he's a natural. Couple that that voice of his and well," She chuckled, "You got a teen heartthrob on your hands." Bonnie stifled a snigger. Marceline shot her a glare.

"You laugh now, but have you looked at him lately? I mean, _really _looked at him? He's not the goofy little kid we met all those years ago anymore. He's… hot, for lack of a better word. All muscle and blue eyes and gold hair…" She drifted off into daydreams. Bubblegum snapped her fingers, rousing her from her reverie.

"Alright, well then what happened?" Marceline blinked before continuing.

"Okay, well anyways the song was beautiful. Heartbreaking and vulnerable, but beautiful. Then I looked at him and he was just so adorkable and I couldn't help myself and I started kissing him and then he fainted and then he woke up and then he was kissing me back and he is a _great _kisser, by the way…" the story tumbled from her mouth as she told of the teasing, of how the pair eventually snuggled into Finn's bed, keeping their passion chaste(but not _too _chaste) and how she'd finally fallen asleep in his arms, blissfully happy for the first time in ages. Bubblegum sat in contemplative silence.

"Well," she said after a long while, "what are you going to do now?" Marceline hung her head.

"I dunno, I don't know if this was a one-time thing for him or if he wants something more…ugh!" Bubblegum eyed her.

"Are you kidding me?" she deadpanned, incredulous. "You've been spending _way_ to much time with jerks if you think Finn is just gonna dump you after one night. I don't think he's capable of anything other than unconditional love. Chances are he's been crushing on you for awhile, and now he's got you. He's probably ecstatic." Marceline looked at her, hopeful.

"You think so?" Bonnibel nodded firmly.

"Without a doubt." Marceline sighed, visibly relieved. She sat back and regarded her friend.

"Thanks, Bonnie. You know, you're a pretty good friend. Even if you're gonna become a boring ol' mom." Bubblegum smiled primly.

"Just because I'm becoming a mother doesn't mean I'm going to stop being your bud. Children make things better, not worse. I hope my daughter will have her Auntie Marcie to count on." Marceline's countenance softened.

"Of course." She said softly. Princess Bubblegum grinned, and the two friends chatted for awhile more, important life decisions forgotten in favor of friendly company.


End file.
